It was bound to happen. The beautiful insanity that is tomato season on a small farm. Big ones, little ones, fat ones, skinny ones. We’re eating them with breakfast and we’re eating them with dinner. Plenty of preserving happening, too.
This year, it’s passata, diced tomatoes and roast tomatoes in the vacola preserving jars. Experiments are afoot for lacto-fermented tomato sauce also.
Just a few… Rose the permachef defining each tomato’s destiny…
An explosion of awesomeness. On every level.
A year is a long time, and there wont be another tomato season for 12 months. We learned last year that, no matter how much passata you think you have in early autumn, by mid-spring, you don’t. So cherish and capture the harvest now, against the long winter ahead.
Thanks to Michael for growing them and to Rose for preserving them. The future winter stews of Milkwood will sing your names from the woodstove…
Any stellar recipes to share that we simply must try? Bring them on…
>> More market garden posts
Are you an aspiring en-masse tomato grower? Want to learn all the tricks to ensure a bountiful harvest? Our next Market Garden Masterclass is at Allsun Farm, 9-11 March…
Wonderful to see so many tomatoes at this time of year! Here in Boston we’re in the thick of winter and all tomatoes come from California or the hot house.
I Love to find out about traditional foods..thanks for the great photos and info! going to be making our own passata come fall..so exciting! thanks~
I’ve just posted a method of preserving tomatoes that came from my Italian rellies.
I put them whole/chopped in a blender then spread the mix on the sheets that I have for my dehydrator for making fruit leather. Dehydrate the mix until crunchy dry and then blend again into a fine powder et voila – Tomato Magic! Use like you would tomato paste, the advantage being that all the goodness of the skin and seeds is still in there. You could add dried and powdered onion, celery and garlic and have tomato cuppa soup too. Press the powder into jars and you’ve stored many many tomatoes in a smaller space than other methods. Condensed… Read more »
I envy your bounty. Yet again, we planted not enough and too late. Having said that, the fruit that we are getting is top notch and there is plenty of it. Next season, we’re going to plant 4x as many tomato plants–early!
What about sun-dried and preserved in oil?
Reblogged this on Agriculture and Climate Change and commented:
A Heaven of Tomatoes!
I do something similar to LightFoot Education with a dehydrator. Cook them over a slow hotplate for many hours to eliminate as much moisture as possible leaving a thick paste which is then put onto the trays of my dehydrator to make a leather. Equals to at least half a bucket of tomatoes to one tray. The flavour is very concentrated. I also slice tomatoes into 10mm slices and dehydrate. The dried tomato is easily stored for use later in the season. To extend the tomato growing season I use an igloo which starts them producing 6 weeks earlier than… Read more »
I’ve GOT to get brave and preserve in jars. I’m a woos. I freeze the stuff but there’s enver enough room for that and everything else!
If it helps (not sure how you’d do it on your scale, though, maybe just for your little kitchen in the Tinyhouse) our bathtub tomato plants go all through winter no problems. Admittedly I think we are slightly warmer here (but I don’t think by a lot).
http://seemyfootprints.blogspot.com.au/2011/07/bath-tub-tomatoes-still-going.html
Anyway, enjoy, as I am sure you will, your tomato bounty!
such a relief to see this in the middle of winter. green tomato pickles take care of green tomatoes and goes with fish.
Here’s a confession: one of the reasons I follow you is so I can see your tomatoes while it’s snowing here. You inspire me in so may ways, and your lovely tomatoes are but one of them – that sounded weird.
thanks. it’s ok, i get it. we do the same with you northern hemisphere types in our winter, fear not…